Anxiety in the Workplace: Distancing

Distancing

We’re moving along in our study of five common coping mechanisms when we experience anxious systems, whether those systems are in the workplace, in the church, or in the family.  We’ve already taken a look at the first three, and today we’ll take a look at distancing.

• Underfunctioning
• Overfunctioning
• Blaming
• Distancing
• Gossip, gossip, gossip

There are times when distancing yourself from a situation can actually be healthy, so it is important to ask God to help us search our hearts for a motive.  There have been numerous times in my teaching career when I’ve said to myself, “I don’t care anymore, I’m just going to shut the door to my classroom and work.”  I can be rather self-rightous about it, convincing myself that I’m just not going to involve myself in pettiness.  However, God gently knocks on my heart until I realize I need to be part of the solution and not simply go into retirement.  Then I set aside time each week to wander around the campus and edify–it works much better than climbing into my fort and closing the doors.

Let each one of us make it a practice to please (make happy) his neighbor for his good and for his true welfare, to edify him [to strengthen him and build him up spiritually].  Romans 15:2

P.S.  We can emotionally distance ourselves too.

Photo credit:  http://www.flickr.com/photos/12023825@N04/2898021822/